I picked this up because of the guest editor, Elizabeth Strout, whose work I love. My favorite story was Carol Keeley's "Cremains," about how a widow deals with the issues immediately following her young husband's untimely death. I also enjoyed Joyce Carol Oates's "Distance," about a woman and her complicated desire for her lover. The last story in this issue, "Marty" by Kathryn Staley, dealing with the complicated feelings of a group of high school friends much later in life, was fascinating in how it captured the essence of those high school relationships. The lone essay, "Avocation," by Antonya Nelson, was excellent and something I'd be likely to read again. I read all the poetry in the issue, too, and enjoyed quite a bit of it, but hardly feel qualified to comment on any individual poem. ( )